George Weasley sat on his bed, sticking his finger through a hole in the worn quilt that had adorned his bed for as long as he could remember. He was uncharacteristically sullen and with a troubled look, he met the eye of his twin, "Fred, what if we get sorted into different houses? If we have separate dormitories?"
Fred shoved a few joke books into his trunk before leaping over his bed to sit with his brother, "First off, we won't be sorted to different houses-the entire Weasley family has been in Gryffindor. And if we are assigned different dormitories, we will coerce someone to trade by way of itching powder and a sticking charm. There's nothing to worry about, dear brother."
George nodded, trusting his twin brother and best friend, then stood and added a few last minute items to his trunk, including some joke items that he wouldn't need at school, but he wouldn't want his mother or pesky little brother and sister to find in his absence. Shutting the heavy lid, he looked around the room wearily. He wasn't looking forward to sharing a room with people other than Fred.
"Fred! George! Breakfast!"
Fred looked at the doorway, then down to the drawstring bag of prank potions Bill had given him before he had moved out earlier during the summer, and quickly he shoved them in his trunk, under his socks, "Come on, George, I'm starving!"
George watched as Fred bounded out of the room, seemingly without a care in the world, and for a few moments he remained standing next to his trunk, looking forlornly around their room. It wasn't as if he didn't want to go to Hogwarts, he had been looking forward to this for a long time, he was just worried that things would not be the same between he and Fred once they got there. After spending 11.5 years sleeping next to each other, playing with each other, scheming with each other and finishing each other's thoughts and sentences, he wouldn't know what to do if they were separated into different houses.
His stomach was tied in nervous knots, but he put on a brave face and went downstairs to sit at the table with the rest of his family. His parents and siblings often joked that the twins didn't have a serious bone in their bodies, and he didn't want to show up looking worried and depressed, it would ruin their image. Instead, he tried to imitate the bubbly excitement that Fred had been exhibiting for the last two weeks. Somehow, he felt like they would just know it was a front, though.
"Ah, there you are Georgie." Molly Weasley said brightly, wiping her hands on her apron before spooning some potato flakes and sausages onto his plate, "Eat up, dear, we'll need to be leaving soon to catch the train."
George managed a few bites before he started feeling queasy, his mind racing as he thought of everything he would miss at school. Glancing at his younger brother, who was shoveling more food onto his plate than the rest of the family combined, he smirked slightly, pretty sure he wouldn't miss Ron's whining and complaining about every little thing. He barely heard as his mother continued her ramblings, only catching bits and pieces of what she was saying.
"I simply cannot believe the two of you are off to Hogwarts, where does time go? It seems like just yesterday you two were crying because Bill was leaving to go to school without you, and here you are, growing like weeds and leaving home for the first time."
George looked at Fred, but his twin was eagerly eating his food, talking with Charlie about the castle and what to expect. He had hoped Fred was at least slightly concerned about the possibility of losing their close relationship, but his brother was instead carefree and bursting with anticipation.
"I think this will be good for the two of you." Percy said in an authoritative tone, "It will give you a chance to break away from each other a bit, make new friends. During my sorting, the Managhan twins were put into separate houses-Gryffindor and Hufflepuff-and they've made loads of friends now that they've had a chance to be known as themselves and not just half of a set."
George felt his stomach churn unpleasantly and he looked at Percy with a horrified expression before he stood and bolted from the kitchen and landed on the bathroom floor in front of the toilet in record time as his food made a reappearance.
He knelt on the cold tile floor, his arms crossed over the toilet seat and his forehead resting against them, shivering slightly as he heard Percy's words again in his head. He didn't know how to function independently and he didn't want to find out now. He and Fred were best friends, they weren't supposed to ditch each other as soon as they arrived at Hogwarts!
He retched again, breathing heavily as he tried to calm down his nerves and his body. He still hadn't managed to do so when there was a light knock on the door and his mother's voice reached his ears.
"Oh dear," Molly fretted as George was sick once more, "You won't make it on the train in this condition. Why didn't you tell me you weren't feeling well, Georgie? You lot are too stubborn for your own good sometimes."
George lifted his head slightly, his cheeks deeply flushed against his pale face, "I'm not unwell." George insisted, "I'm fine."
"Oh yes, the picture of perfect health." Molly retorted, "No shame in arriving late, dear, your health comes first. When did you start to feel poorly? What hurts?"
"Nothing!" George insisted, wiping his mouth on his sleeve even as Molly extended a flannel cloth for him to use, "It's just…"
"Ahh," Molly said knowingly, helping George to his feet and handing him a small glass of water, "A case of jitters? I thought you were excited to be going away to school?"
George felt tears prickle his eyes and he looked away, horrified that he was being as sentimental as a toddler, this was not the way eleven year old boys acted. He took a sip of water, willing it to stay down, and mumbled, "I'm not scared to go away to school, I'm scared Fred and I won't be friends anymore."
"You're barking!" a voice exclaimed from the doorway, "I already told you that we're both going to make Gryffindor, there's nothing that can come between us. You're my best friend, you prat, no stupid school can change that."
George looked over to Fred with a flicker of embarrassment at his emotional scene, and nodded reluctantly, although he still wasn't fully convinced, "Okay." He brushed off his mother's hand on his shoulder and scowled slightly, "Can we all step out of the loo, please? This is getting a little…girly….for my tastes."
"There is nothing wrong with a boy showing emotion, George Weasley!" Molly scolded lightly, "And there's nothing wrong with being anxious about going away to school. I'll have you know that Bill and Charlie both had a very hard time adjusting to being away, so this certainly isn't something unique to you."
George flushed with embarrassment as Molly planted a kiss on his forehead, "If the two of you are finished with breakfast, you can bring your trunks down, we'll be leaving soon."
After Molly left the room, Fred looked searchingly at George, his forehead crinkled, "You're really worried about this, aren't you? I can feel it radiating off of you. Look, if we're not in the same house, although I doubt it'll happen, we'll find a way to make it work. I'll sneak out of my dormitory every night and into yours and we'll spend all of the time we're not in class together."
Fred took a step towards George and gave him a quick hug, patting him on the back awkwardly. They normally didn't show this sort of affection, but at the moment it felt right. Stepping back, he grinned mischievously, "At least we won't have to see Ron and Ginny until Christmas. Can you imagine months and months without the nagging and whining?"
"No, I can't." George replied honestly, returning Fred's smile. It was no secret that Ron liked to complain and Ginny was as talkative and annoying as most 8 year old girls. Perhaps Fred was right, perhaps he was worrying over nothing.
()
Fred and George looked nervously at each other as "Wagner, Benjamin" was sorted and Fred discreetly squeezed George's hand, "Whatever happens, we're going to be fine. I promise.
"Weasley, Fred."
George held his breath in anticipation as Fred walked to the stool and placed the worn hat on his head with flourish and a dazzling smile. In what couldn't have been longer than ten seconds, the hat called out "Gryffindor!" and Fred jumped up, giving a thumbs-up to George and jogging to the Gryffindor table where he was met with cheers by Charlie and the normally-subdued Percy.
George took a steadying breath as Professor McGonagall called his name, the last of the students to be sorted, and he approached the hat and, with the same expression Fred had worn carefully plastered onto his face, he slid the hat on. His stomach ached slightly as his nerves peaked, and he waited anxiously for something, anything to happen.
"Another Weasley? How many of you are there?" The hat spoke inside of George's mind, "Shall I send you off with your brothers, then? Brave, strong…a sense of humour as well, I see. Yes, definitely a…"
"Gryffindor!" The hat announced to the hall and George was so relieved that he nearly fell over off the stool. He beamed as his house table cheered, and he slid into the seat next to Fred, completely overcome with relief.
"All of that worrying…" Fred trailed off teasingly, "I told you we'd stay together, we're two peas in a pod, as Mum always says."
George grinned, then leaned over the table to accept the handshakes Charlie and Percy were offering. The headmaster began to speak, listing rules that were to be followed, but the first year Gryffindors weren't nearly as focused on the speech as they should have been.
"I'm Lee." The boy on Fred's other side said, looking from one twin to the other, "I reckon we'll be roommates."
"I'm George, and this is Fred." George said, motioning from himself to his brother.
Charlie spoke up, directing his words to Lee, "I hope you aren't too bothered by practical jokes, these two are a bit mental when it comes to having a laugh."
"Thanks for the warning," Lee said with a laugh as he turned to the twins, "I see this being the beginning of a legendary friendship."
Food appeared on the table and George hungrily helped himself to a plate full of roast and potatoes, laughing heartily as Lee told he and Fred about a prank he had pulled at his muggle primary school, "My Dad, he thought it was a right laugh-he said he pulled a prank similar to that during his Hogwarts years, but my Mum, she's a muggle mind you, didn't find it amusing in he least."
"Our Mum doesn't find stuff like that funny either." Fred said, his voice muffled through the food that he was speaking around, "What can you do, though? Some people just don't get what's funny."
"She sure wasn't pleased when we turned our younger brother's teddy bear into a spider." George said with a wicked grin, "To this day, Mum has to check for spiders in his room before bed."
"She wasn't pleased because it wasn't funny." Percy commented from across the table, though Charlie was chuckling quietly.
Fred looked to George, then said quietly enough to where only Lee and George could hear him, "I think Mum may have possessed Percy before we left home, we'll have to bring him back to his senses."
"I wasn't aware he had any sense?" George smirked, turning his attention back to his food as Percy seemed to catch the gist of what they were saying with a frown.
He glanced at his brother, and at their new friend, and smiled. Things would be different now that they were at school, but it wasn't different in a bad way, as he had been afraid of. He had a feeling this would just be the foundation for a new adventure for he and Fred to embark on.
"You okay, Georgie?" Fred whispered quietly, seeming to notice George's thoughtful expression.
George nodded, smiling genuinely at his brother, and truthfully was able to say, "Yes, I am."